Fri, Jul 31, 2009
Governor Crist And Lt. Governor Kottkamp Address Florida's Role
In Space Program
Florida Governor Charlie Crist Thursday highlighted the
importance of aerospace to Florida's economy and the national space
program. His comments came during a discussion with reporters
in Orlando at the 2009 Farm to Fuel Summit.
Florida Gov. Crist
"The importance of extending the life of the Space Shuttle
program cannot be overestimated," said Governor Crist. "What I'd
like to see is less of a gap between the shuttle program and the
Constellation program. In fact, the best situation would be
to have an overlap of the two."
Also today, on behalf of Governor Crist and the State of
Florida, Lt. Governor Jeff Kottkamp provided testimony to the U.S.
Human Space Flight Review Committee in Cocoa Beach. He
addressed four critical topics relating to Florida's space
industry: the "gap" created by NASA's current plan to retire
the Space Shuttle by the end of 2010 and succeeding Constellation
projects, International Space Station impacts, commercial aerospace
initiatives, and preservation of U.S. heavy lift
capability.
Kennedy Space Center
Lt. Governor Kottkamp also presented the following suggestions
to the commission to ensure Florida's leadership in the United
States' aerospace program:
- Establish a policy to maximize the use of existing
infrastructure; retain strategically skilled workers; and explore
new opportunities for state/federal collaboration.
- Commit to the development or retention of a near-term
heavy-lift launch capability that matches or exceeds the capability
of the Space Shuttle.
- Close the human space flight "gap," by allowing the
continuation of the Shuttle program without the constraint of the
2010 deadline, and accelerating the development of a
next-generation launch system.
- Accelerate and maximize the use of commercial launch services
for International Space Station cargo and crew transport.
- Establish Kennedy Space Center and the state-developed Space
Life Sciences Lab as an official part of the International Space
Station "National Laboratory" that will remain in operation at a
minimum to 2020.
- Expand Kennedy Space Center's value-added role in appropriate
areas, including early involvement in the design and testing of
next-generation launch vehicles; a greater role in applied research
and development for space transportation technologies and
lunar/Mars base systems; and responsibility for logistics and
supply chain management for NASA's exploration effort.
"These are critical times for Florida and the space sector, and
the challenges include the NASA transition and funding issues, the
emergence of commercial space, and heightened interests by the
United States Department of Defense in space," Lt. Governor
Kottkamp said. "Despite the very challenging global fiscal
environment, Florida has taken a long-term view, and decisive
actions will serve both Florida's, and our nation's future."
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